Inspiration as a musician: I am mostly inspired by art – I love impressionist and abstract paintings. Monet and Kandinsky are my favorites.

Current playlist: I like to listen to non-classical music when I am not studying. The exception is trombone choir and brass music. I can't get enough of the sound of a great brass choir!

Hobbies: Hiking, coffee roasting, and dog training.

What is your most fun concert memory? One of the most amazing orchestra concerts that I played was on the Star Wars in Concert tour at the Cowboy’s stadium in Texas for 40,000 people with camera’s showing closeups of the brass players on the massive Jumbotron. Having been raised in Texas, it was special to have my family and friends in the audience.

Where is the strangest place you've practiced? In order to build focus while on the audition trail, when I lived in Chicago, I would pull my trombone out and serenade people waiting for the El (elevated train) with trombone excerpts and then throw my trombone back into the case just in time to hop on the train.